The Lost Princess
by Anonymousnette
Summary: 16 years after Mia becomes queen of Genovia, her teenage daughter, Helen, runs away to America. Now after 2 years, Helen finds out that her mother is in America. Will she return home, or once again run away from the past? (Chapters 1 and 2 Rewritten)
1. Prolouge

**So, since I am a better writer now, I have decided to rewrite this story. It will still be the same plot, just better written.**

I look down at the country I'm leaving behind. I hate disappointing them like this, being the heir to the throne, but my mother is going to have a baby soon, which will result in new heirs. Being a princess is great and all, but I'm tired of the spotlight. So, I'm going back to the country were my mother was born and start a new life. Good bye Genovia, I will miss you.


	2. Chapter 1: A New Life

It's been 2 years since I left Genovia. After I came to America, the first thing I did was exchange the Genovian money that I already had for American money and went shopping. The first thing I did was get a backpack, a sleeping mask, and some scissors. Then, I went to a beauty shop so I could get some things to disguise my hair. I inherited my mom's brown hair, but instead of being frizzy like her hair once was, it turned out long and wavy like a movie star's. Luckily, my hair was tucked under a hoodie I bought back in Genovia.

I got some semi- permanent hair dye (it was the only thing that would last a couple of days and that I could afford to buy in the bulk), and a hair straightener. I also bought some makeup to hide my perfect cheekbones. I had inherited my father's side of the family way too much. Which is weird because my mom and dad are basically from the same family (royal families are complicated). After my mom became queen of Genovia, she married Nicholas, the viscount's son, which makes them distant cousins, I guess?

Then, I went to a pharmacy to get some tinted contact lenses. Can't wear sunglasses forever. Then I went into the bathroom to apply makeup. Finally, I bought some clothes. Since I wanted to pack light, and since I had drained my resources quite a bit, I was only able to afford two t shirts, two pairs of pants, and a sweater, all from a consignment shop. I'm surprised how cheap they were there. I managed to find a family in a quiet suburban town. I told them that I was an orphan from Canada, and that I wanted to stay in the US since my mother was born here, which isn't a lie, at least the second part isn't. Naturally, they took me in and made me a legal citizen. So, now I'm Mandy, the blonde haired, slightly curly, blue eyed American girl who babysits and spends the money on haircare products and contact lens, for reasons people can't understand, instead of Princess Helen of Genovia. The Genovian government stopped looking for me after a while, and I have a good life now, with family that actually spends time with me. _What can go wrong?_ I figured, or so I thought.


	3. Chapter 2: Discovery

It was just another day at school. My adopted sister, Holly, and I were sitting in our Civics class. We were both the same age (fifteen) and got along well together, as we have some things in common. We both didn't like to eat fish, and were concerned about the environment, especially the Maui dolphins. We were also in the church Christmas pageant together. My mom wasn't really big on religion, but my views have changed since arriving in America. The only difference is that while she was a vegetarian, I liked meat, except for turkey because I don't exactly like the texture of it.

"Okay class, since we are studying different kinds of government, I would like to introduce our special guest," the teacher annouced. "Amelia Mignonette Thermopolis Renaldi, queen of Genovia."

Wait… my mom was here! What to do, what to do, WHAT TO DO! Right when I was trying to come up with a plan, my mother walked in. She actually never changed. You would expect some stress - induced personality change from someone whose daughter ran away two years ago, but like on all school visits (she was invited to speak at quite a bit of schools in Genovia), she was just wearing a simple white blouse with jeans, and her hair was in a bun, with a tiara instead of her crown perched on top. She never really liked to wear fancy on these occassions, but something was different about her: she was holding a two year old in her arms.

"Hello everyone," she said, "This is my two year old son, Noah. His twin sister, Mary is at home, being heir to the throne."

"I thought Princess Helen was heir to the throne," said Robert, one of the most annoying kids in my class. Then, I saw something in my mother's face that I didn't see before. She had a few wrinkles, and her face seemed to sage with tiredness. I never knew my departure would cause something more than the twins being born a week early (you can never keep anything from the queen of Genovia).

She sighed. "As you all known, Princess Helen is still missing. But we're still looking. We have agents searching in San Francisco, where I was born, and some of the guards that accompanied me on this trip are looking here as well." Oh rats! The Genovian government was here! I needed to get out of there, and FAST! I raised my hand.

"Yes Mandy?" the teacher asked.

"Um, could I go to the bathroom?" I asked.

"Sure, just don't miss too much of the lecture!" my teacher said. I rushed to the bathroom as fast as I can, and stared in the mirror. A few brown streaks were appearing in my hair, a sign that I had to re dye. But I would have to buy a new color if I was going to escape. But where should I go? I could go to another state, or maybe even Canada. Yes, I'll go to Canada, claim that I'm from Alaska and then…

"Mandy, are you okay?" Holly asked as she walked in. Oh no, how was I going to explain this?

"I'm fine, totally fine! What would make you think otherwise?" I answered.

Holly raised an eyebrow. "Well, you rushed to the bathroom pretty fast." She took a step closer to me. "Are you feeling sick or something?"

"Nope, totally fine," I had got to stop saying that.

Holly's expression grew even more dubious. "You don't sound fine, Mandy, we're sisters. We can tell each other anything. So if you're keeping something, just spill. I won't tell anyone."

I took a deep breath. "Alright, it's about time that I told you anyways," I said, "I'm not who you think I am. See this?" I showed her the brown streaks in my hair.

"You've been dying your hair all this time, is that all you were worried about?" Holly asked.

I sighed. "Actually, it's more than that," I took off my contact lenses, washed the makeup off my face, and then looked at her. "I am Helen Clarisse Thermopolis Renaldi, princess of Genovia."


	4. Chapter 3: Questions

_Sorry it took so long! I've been sick for a while, but I'm better now_

"How? What? Where? When? Why?" Holly asked. She looked pretty confused.

"I ran away from Genovia to get away from the paparazzi," I said, "I wanted a quiet, normal life. I wanted to be like my mother, before she found out that she was a princess. My mother and I took a trip to Africa to help the people that were in poverty when I was six. I had so much, and those people just had trouble finding clean drinking water every day. That image has always been in my head. So, I took nearly all of my money, hopped on a plane, and came to America, where I found you." There was a long pause.

"Wow, I had no idea, your highness," Holly said.

"Please, just call me Mandy, like you always have," I said. Sheesh, this was one of the reasons why I left Genovia in the first place.

"Okay Mandy. Do you want me to take you to the nurse? I mean, if you pretend to be sick, we can get you home and figure out what to do there," Holly suggested.

"No, I think I can handle it," I said.

"Are you sure?" Holly asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure," I answered. I could handle my mother for one day.

"Alright, if you say so," Holly said. I put in my contact lens, reapplied my makeup, and went back to class.

* * *

"What took you so long?" the teacher demanded when we walked in. Uh oh, time to take Holly up on her offer.

"Um, I don't feel so well, can I go to the nurse?" I asked.

"Fine. Holly, take Mandy's stuff and take her to the nurse," the teacher said. So, Holly grabbed my stuff, and we went to the nurse.

* * *

Something was familiar about that girl. In fact, she kind of looked like Helen. But that was impossible. Helen had brown hair, and that girl had blonde hair. It couldn't be Helen, could it?


	5. Chapter 4: The Dinner

_I might re rate this due to the fact that this mentions undershirts._

"Holly, get Mandy to bed," my adopted mom, Susan, said when we got home, "I hope this isn't one of those things where she's sick for three days."

"It's alright mom," I said," I think I'll be better by tonight."

"Well, that's good, because the queen of Genovia's coming over tonight," she said.

"WHAT?!" Holly and I exclaimed. How was my mom coming here?! I thought she didn't know I was here! Or does she?

"I invited her over. I am the assistant principal, remember?" Susan said. How can she invite her over?! This is bad, so bad. Holly and I went to our room, and then I panicked.

"What do we do? If my mother finds out I'm here, I'll get sent back!" I exclaimed.

"I don't know, but that ruins our plans of packing up and leaving tomorrow," said Holly.

"You mean packing me up and sneaking me out tomorrow," I said.

"No, we're leaving together," Holly said.

"What?! You can't leave!" I said. I couldn't let Holly leave! She had the perfect life. The life that I've always wanted.

"Mandy, Helen, whatever, remember what Ruth said to Naomi? Wherever you go, I go. Wherever you stay, I stay. I feel the same way. Even though we're not related by blood, we're still sisters. We're supposed to stick together," Holly said. She's got a point. Nobody has ever done this before. Maybe I've found the perfect life after all.

"Alright, but I better re dye my hair before dinner," I said.

"Luckily, you have a bathroom next to your bedroom," Holly said.

* * *

At precisely 4:00, Queen Mia came to dinner.

"Welcome your highness," Susan said, curtsying in her flowing white dress. She had insisted that we all wear our best clothes, and for Holly and me, that meant wearing our Christmas dresses early. Holly's had a white top with translucent short sleeves with a high waisted green skirt with a bow in the back and a flower on the ribbon. She also wore white tights with cheetah print shoes with a black tip and heel. I on the other hand, had a lacy green, red, and black dress with an undershirt underneath it. I was also wearing black tights with pewter colored shoes with straps. I didn't want to go on the fancy side. After all, when you're a princess you get more than enough fancy dresses. For the past two Christmases I had just worn a fancy button down sweater and dress pants, but this year I decided to wear a dress. In between us was Holly's little sister, Hope. She had brown hair not too different then what my hair was like, and she was wearing a simple sparkly green dress with a bow.

"These are my daughters Holly and Hope," Susan said, "And this is my adopted daughter, Mandy." Did she have to mention adopted? "My husband is still working, so he'll be late for dinner."

"That's okay, you really didn't have to do this," Queen Mia said.

"I insist," Susan said, "A queen must feel in her palace. Plus, I've cook all of the traditional Genovian dishes."

"As long as it doesn't involve Genovian ice cream. I had a bad experience with that once," Mia said. Susan cringed.

* * *

"So, what grade are your kids in?" Mia asked.

"Hope's in sixth grade, and Mandy and Holly are both in tenth grade," Susan answered.

"It's called sophomore, mom," Holly said. We were sitting at the table eating dessert. Luckily, Susan had made pear pie to go with the ice cream. So while Mia just got pie, the rest of us had ice cream with pie. Susan had been making pleasant conversation all throughout dinner. I remained quiet.

"Let's have some tea," Susan said, "And maybe you can get Mandy to talk some more." If I talk, then she will find out that it's me! I had to come up with something, soon.

* * *

"So, Mandy, how long have you've been here?" Mia asked. We were having tea in the living room. Susan, Holly, Hope, and I were sitting on the couch, while Mia and her bodyguard sat in the two chairs by the window. I tried to come up with a way to answer, yet disguise my voice.

"Two years," Holly said. I gave her a grateful look.

"Holly, let Mandy answer," Susan said. Suddenly, I got an idea.

"Two years," I answered in a British accent. Susan, Holly, and Hope all looked at me strangely. Hey, I stopped in London for a little bit after I left Genovia. I've picked an accent up.

"And where did you come from?" Mia asked, not noticing the looks I was getting.

"Canada," I said.

"Mandy," said my dad, who had just come home from work. He held up what looked like my contact lens case. "I found this in your room. Have you've been having eye trouble?" _Uh oh._

 **Busted! I have a poll relating to my other story,** **Ashla** **. Feel free to participate!**


	6. Chapter 5: The Decision

How can I have been such a fool! I should have known better then to leave my case on my barrow!

"Well Mandy, I'm waiting for an answer," my dad said. I look to Holly, then I look around the room. Everyone is expecting an answer.

"Um… sometimes I need contacts to see," I answered in my Brittish accent. Phew. That should get me off the hook.

"Really? Because the eye doctor never said anything about contact lenses. And where did you pick up that British accent?" my father asked. I was so busted. Finally, I decided to tell the truth.

"Mom," I said, turning to Mia. I took off my contacts, revealing my true eye color. A look of shock crossed Mia's face.

"Helen? Is that really you?" Mia said.

"Yes mom, it's me," I said. She ran up to hug me, as soon as I put my contact lens back in.

"Oh my baby, my baby, my baby!" she said, "You've been hiding here this whole time? But, why?"

"I didn't want to be a princess anymore!" I exclaimed, "I was tired of the paparazzi, tired of not having any time to myself, tired of being treated like a princess! I just wanted a normal life. Like the one that you had before you became a princess."

"Why didn't you tell me this in the first place?" Mia, or I should refer to her as mom now, said.

"I didn't want to disappoint you. I was supposed to be the next queen, and you said yourself that you became a princess instead of giving up your title," I said, "No problem. I'm going away again. And this time, you're never going to find me."

"I'm going too," Holly said. I couldn't believe she was going anyways. She was the best sister I ever had!

"Helen, wait!" my mom said. I turned around and looked at her. "I don't blame you for wanting to leave. I didn't want to be a princess at first either, much less queen. So that's why I'm giving you a choice. I heard you're in the Christmas Pageant. I'm inviting you're whole family to spend Christmas in Genovia, and to stay there for New Years. In the meantime, while you're here you can visit me on the weekends, even after school if you like. You have until then to make a choice: To come home to Genovia and be a princess, or stay here and give up your title. Is that clear?"

"Yes mom," I said. Though, I don't need much choice. This life here is so much better than the one in Genovia. I'm not like my mom. She chose to be a princess when she could've given up her title and have a normal life. Give _me_ a normal life.

"And Helen, I want to make one other thing clear," mom said, "No matter what you chose, I'll be proud of you. And I'll always love you."

"As will I," Susan said, "But tomorrow, we're going to reregister you as Helen."

"What? You can't do that! I haven't made my choice yet!" I exclaimed.

"Honey, we think it's time for you to stop hiding from who are," my dad, or I should call him by his first name now, Jacob, said. I ran to my room, slammed the door, and threw myself onto my bed. How could they do this to me?! If I can't get privacy here, or in Genovia, then where do I go?


	7. Chapter 6: First Day of Being a Princess

My adoptive parents registered me as Helen the next day. It was the most humiliating day of my life.

"So, you're actually Princess Helen, hmmm?" the office lady said with a grin on her face.

"Like you have to remind me," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Helen, be nice," Susan said. And if that wasn't bad enough, I have to travel with a body guard. A body guard! As I walked into civics class this morning, the teacher even bothered to play fanfair from her phone and say, "Ladies and gentleman, may I present Princess Helen of Genovia!" As I took my seat she said, "Today, we will be studying monarchies. And since Helen is a princess, she should know all about it." The on my way to English class, everyone wanted my autograph! I was almost late to class! And that doesn't even compare to when I got into English class.

"Now class, despite certain circumstances, I will not go easy on anyone despite their status," my English teacher said. As if I wanted him to go easy on me! I just want to be treated like a normal girl! And in gym class, the gym teacher told me, and I quote, "Whip those princess muscles into shape!" And everyone was staring at my body guard like he was an alien from outer space! The only time I could get away was during study hall, when I went into the one place where he couldn't follow me: into the girl's bathroom. I decide to read a book, since it calms me down. However, before I could start reading, I heard some girls start talking and the name Mandy mentioned.

"How can she call herself a princess? She doesn't even look like one," a voice said. I peeked over the stall and saw some of my arch enemies: Late, Iris, Kassidy, Sarah, Jennifer, and Daisy. Kate and Iris used to be my friends, but then over the summer they seemed to forget that I was even their friend. Then they sat next to someone else and forgot all about me. Jennifer, Daisy, and Cassidy never liked me, even though they pretended to like me for some reason. Sarah doesn't like me because every time I try to get into the conversation, she says, "Um, I wasn't talking to you." Well, how else can you get into the conversation? Besides, I tried asking her and her friend Conrad, very politely, to be quiet during math class, but did they listen, NO! Maybe next time I'll just tell them to zip it.

"Yeah, she's not even that pretty," Iris said. At least I don't cake my face with makeup.

"And aren't princesses support to be quiet?" Sarah said.

"Yeah, and in film club she always walks up to us in film club and says 'Whatcha doing?"' Daisy said.

"It's so annoying," Jennifer said. First of all, that only happened twice. Second of all, I had technical difficulties and the teacher was busy, so I had to wait, and I just happened to be standing near their computers. Third of all, it didn't look like all of their work was done.

"Well, it seems sutible for a girl who still believes in fairytales," Cassidy said. Okay, what was so wrong with believing in Santa Claus? That was the last straw!

"Well, if you think princesses should be quiet damsels in distress, then who's really believing in fairytales?" I said as I came out of the stall.

"Mandy, it's not nice to eavesdrop," said Kate in that I'm-trying-to-teach-you-to-be-like-me-but-I'm-so-not-your-friend voice.

"And we weren't talking to you," Sarah said.

"Well, I have these things, on the side of my head, called ears, and if you want your conversations to stay more private, then you're going to have to talk more quietly," I responded. I walked out f the bathroom before they could say any more. I was going to have a talk with my mother about this.


	8. Chapter 7: Paparazzi!

**Thanks for the reviews!** **Anyways, in my contest, Once Upon a Time Season 7 is the winner! Thanks for reading everyone!**

 **musiclover246: Thanks**

 **riaam: Wasn't thinking of including them, but now that you mention it, maybe I will...**

I got out of the taxi and looked up at the hotel my mother was staying at. It was a huge five star hotel. I slowly walked through the gold plated doors, and gazed at the lobby. The first thing I noticed was a huge glass chandelier in the middle of the ceiling. Lush, red velvet sofas lined the back of the wall. The ceiling was covered in gold, or at least an imitation of it. Seriously, not this many people would be able to afford it if it was real gold. I walked up to the mahogany front desk where the receptionist was.

"May I help you?" the receptionist asked.

"Yes, I'm looking for Queen Mia's room," I replied.

"Is the queen expecting you?"

"Probably."

"You can't go up without an appointment."

"I'm pretty sure she'll make an exception for me."

"And just who do you think you are?"

Great, now I have to use my royal title. "Princess Helen Clarisse Thermopolis Renaldi of Genovia."

There was an awkward silence, and then he laughed. "You expect me to believe that you're the princess of Genovia?"

"There she is!" a voice shouted. I turned towards the doors, and saw a crowd with cameras and microphones burst through the hallway doors. Apparently the paparazzi had found me already. The receptionist looked astounded.

"Uh, why don't you just take these, and Queen Mia's in room 803," the receptionist said as he handed the keys to me, then ran off to keep the paparazzi from getting footprints, or at least that's what it sounded like from his shouting. As soon as the elevator arrived, I ran in. It could not have come soon enough.


	9. Chapter 8: The sort of Conversation

"I cannot believe it!" mom exclaimed as she paced across the floor. After I had burst through the door of her hotel room, I had told her about the paparazzi incident in the lobby. "Who could've told them you were coming here?"

"I could think of a few people," I muttered to myself, "Why can't I just live a normal life?"

"Helen..."

I held my hand up. "I'm tired of being in the limelight. Of not having a private moment in my life. Can't you understand that?"

"I..."

"I know it wasn't your idea to reregister me but..."

"Helen." Uh oh, I knew that look. "You know I've been through something similar myself. I'll call up the principal myself and make sure that no one else makes a big deal about it."

"Well, what am I supposed to do about the paparazzi?"

My mother scrunched her face in concentration for a minute, then looked at me. "I think I may have a temporary solution."

 **I know, I know, it's short, but I figured another cliffhanger wouldn't hurt.**


	10. Chapter 9: The Getaway

My mother and I peered down the staircase and looked into the lobby. The paparazzi was still there, trying to get through the many lobby workers that were trying to block their way.

"Ready?" mom asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be," I replied back. We both had gotten into these ridiculous get ups, sort of like the disguises you see on TV: Floppy hats, tight fitting dresses, sunglasses, fake pearl necklaces, heels, hand bags, and of course, they were all in black. It was embarrassing and probably wouldn't work, but when I saw the shouting, pushing crowd, I was ready to try anything. Mom and I took our positions.

"Ready..."

"Set..."

"GO!"

We sashayed into the lobby. Everything was going well until we reached the paparazzi. As I remembered when I lived in Genovia, I could recall that they didn't have the best manners, so "excuse me" probably wasn't going to work. I looked over at my mom. She winked at me, and I knew that that meant to follow her lead. She dove into the crowd.

"Oh excuse me... How rude!" she said as she walked through the crowd. I got the idea, and joined in, chatting back and forth with her.

"Oh dear!"

"How impolite this crowd is!"

"It's much better in Paris."

"Oh yes, in Paris the paparazzi is much more polite."

After what seemed like an eternity, we finally made it out of the building and away from the paparazzi. Thankfully, no one was the wiser.


End file.
